Premier League Notes - Week 2

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 2

The second week of the 2019-2020 Premier League season saw:

25 goals - most by Norwich = 3

262 shots - most by Man City = 30

88 on target - most by Man City = 10

129 corners - most by Man City = 13

44 offsides - most by Arsenal/Aston Villa = 5 each

363 tackles - most by Watford = 34

219 fouls - most by Wolves = 17

29 bookings - most by WAT/NEW/SHU = 3 each

0 red cards

2 penalties - 1 scored (King for Bournemouth)

VAR Stats

Average 6 checks per game

3 overturned decisions

3 disallowed goals (Arsenal, Brighton and Man City)

VAR denied Raheem Sterling a last-second winner! Cruel but correct. Hand ball is hand ball, the (not really) new rule book says. Pep Guardiola was gutted of course, pointing out the deja vue of last season’s Champions League quarter-final drama between the same two sides. The boss' bust-up with scorer and star-man Sergio Agüero on the sideline didn't help polish the match report either. And more than ever, it just showed once again, something I always preach, NEVER LEAVE A GAME EARLY!!! No matter how much you dominate, it’s only the scoreboard that counts!!! Brighton's opening goal was also reviewed and disallowed for offside. Oh so close, but rightly so. That's what VAR was introduced for, no? To make sure goals ARE goals. Or not. 

Liverpool made it 11 consecutive league wins as their record run continued at Southampton, having not dropped a point since March 3. Replacement keeper Adrián's late blunder was a nightmare goal to concede, a present for former Red Danny Ings (83'), but Sadio Mané’s opener was just top class (45'+1')! The Senegalese forward turned from scorer to provider as Roberto Firmino produced a fine finish to double the Reds' lead (71') before their keeper's giveaway spoiled the show, ever so slightly. Still, three points and a 100% start is the main thing for Jürgen Klopp and his men.

It's the first time since 2009-10 that Arsenal have won their opening two league games, beating a fighting Burnley side 2-1 at the Emirates. However, Sean Dyche lauded his side's mentality, his side recording more shots than the home side, and was not impressed and complained about all the diving and whining, and I couldn’t agree more! It's not just the Gunners, but especially with replays available, all the drama queens just look more and more ridiculous! But they still keep on falling as long as they get some advantage and calls their way. Annoying but true. The refs need to toughen them up and punish them more for their acts, especially when it's obvious in the replays!

Teemu Pukki's first hat-trick for Norwich is also a first in 26 years for the club in the top-tier. All three goals were superb finishes, including the cracking opener, downing a miserable Newcastle side at Carrow Road. But, as mentioned above, Mané’s stunner gets my top vote (of course)! Leicester's equaliser at Chelsea, Wilfred Ndidi's banging header, is worth a shout-out as well! Aston Villa shot themselves in the foot straight away, conceding a penalty after 26 seconds, giving the home side no chance for the rest of the race against Bournemouth. What a wonder goal it was to make it 2-1 though! Worth nothing in the end, but just in awe!

And last but definitely not least, on Monday Night Football, Paul Pogba's penalty flop cost Manchester United at bogey team Wolves, the first team to come from behind and avoid defeat in three consecutive Premier League games against United. Why oh why did the number 6 take it?! Marcus Rashford is the usual and most reliable taker! Talk afterwards was all about the racist abuse the Frenchman received on Twitter. I always report and block anything repulsive like that straight away. But, on another note, isn’t it funny how racist insults against a Red Devil gets all the attention and condemnation, suddenly there's all sorts of shout-outs and meetings, but a certain Red Egyptian and plenty of other players have had to deal with it for years, but nothing happened. A fine distraction from a weak display and result, me thinks. 

My Predictions - Actual Results

Arsenal 3:1 Burnley - 2:1

Aston Villa 2:2 Bournemouth - 1:2

Brighton 2:0 West Ham - 1:1

Everton 2:1 Watford - 1:0

Norwich 3:2 Newcastle - 3:1

Southampton 0:3 Liverpool - 1:2

Man City 3:1 Tottenham - 2:2

Sheff Utd 1:1 Crystal Palace - 1:0

Chelsea 1:1 Leicester - 1:1

Wolves 1:2 Man Utd - 1:1

Click here for last week’s Premier League Notes.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, PL app, Sky Sports News and RMC Sport live coverage. 

Premier League Notes - Week 1

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 1 

The opening week of the 2019-2020 Premier League season saw:

27 goals - most by Man City = 5
228 shots - most by Tottenham = 31
78 on target - most by Man City = 9
91 corners - most by Tottenham = 14
34 offsides - most by Norwich/Burnley = 5 each
359 tackles - most by Aston Villa = 29
225 fouls - most by Sheff Utd = 19
28 bookings - most by Chelsea = 4
1 red card - Schneiderlin for Everton
2 penalties - 2 scored (Agüero for City, Rashford for United) 

VAR Stats 
Average of 7 checks per game 
3 overturned decisions: 
2 disallowed goals (City and Wolves) and Agüero’s penalty retake

The first game of the season was Liverpool's convincing win against Norwich on Friday night, thrashing the newly promoted side in the first half, and keeping them at bay after the break. An injury to Red keeper Alisson didn't help Jürgen Klopp's men, his replacement and LFC debutante Adrián did a good job under the circumstances. VAR went totally unnoticed, surprisingly. Click here for my ByTheMin Twitter live match coverage. 

Manchester United thrashed Chelsea in the Super Sunday clash. But the scoreline is very harsh and doesn’t reflect the game at all. It was much more competitive, cagey and close in the first hour, just fell to bits with two quick goals. Same with Tottenham against newly promoted Aston Villa, Harry Kane making the crucial difference with two goals in the final four minutes (86', 90').

Manchester City took West Ham apart, making my prediction look more ridiculous with every goal. I honestly thought the Hammers could surprise us after having a very active and positive summer. Pf. Fool me. Dream starts for Burnley and Brighton went pretty unnoticed with all the focus just on the top teams, both sides recording convincing 3-0 wins against Southampton and at Watford respectively.

Raheem Sterling starred for the champions with a hat-trick (51', 75', 90'+1'), Kane and Marcus Rashford (18' pen, 67'), as mentioned above, helped their sides to opening wins with a brace each. Mohamed Salah scored and provided (19', 28') in an explosive first half at Anfield. Same old names at the top, ey?
Billy Sharp’s last-minute equaliser for Sheffield United broke Bournemouth hearts (88'). In only his third PL appearance, the local lad scored with his first top-flight shot. One to remember. Tanguy Ndombele’s leveller for Spurs against Villa was a cracker as well.

As mentioned above, it has been confirmed and was quite clear from the offset, Alisson went down and will be out for a while! It looked like the Brazilian stopper was hit by a ghost?! He looked and searched for the culprit behind him  But it was obvious, he had pulled something. Worrying for Klopp and co. The Schadenfreude of the opposition fans was all over the social media afterwards.

And last but definitely not least, the beloved, VAR! See stats above. It has finally arrived in the Premier League and of course still needs getting used to. But I expected worse to be honest. The interruptions weren't half as long and bad as in the trials. And the reviews and overturned decisions were clear. I am sure especially Wolves boss Nuno Espírito Santo and also City manager Pep Guardiola see it differently, the prior's disallowed goal costing his side two points. It is just impossible to get everything right, but everything can at least be double-checked now. In the end, there is still human beings sitting in front of the screens, so, the decisions are, though more objective, still subjective. So we can and will still curse the officials. Same old. Even with the new technology.

My Predictions - Actual Results
Liverpool 5:1 Norwich - 4:1
West Ham 2:1 Man City - 0:5
Bournemouth 2:1 Sheff Utd - 1:1
Burnley 1:0 Southampton - 3:0
Crystal Palace 0:1 Everton - 0:0
Watford 0:0 Brighton - 0:3
Tottenham 3:1 Aston Villa - 3:1
Leicester 2:1 Wolves - 0:0
Newcastle 0:1 Arsenal - 0:1
Man United 1:1 Chelsea - 4:0

Click here for my previous Premier League Picks Of The Week.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, PL app, Sky Sports News and RMC Sport live coverage.

Premier League Picks Of The Week 12

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 12

The 12th week of Premier League action saw:

205 shots - most by Hull City = 17

24 goals - most by West Brom = 4

226 fouls - most by Leicester = 18

44 bookings - most by Everton = 5

2 red cards - Djilobodji for Sunderland, Reid for West Ham

5 penalties - 4 scored (Sigurdsson for Swansea, Mahrez for Leicester, Kane for Spurs, Lanzini for West Ham), 1 missed (Krkic for Stoke)

What a game! The London derby was a juicy one, it had everything in it. The Hammers were 2-1 up thanks to Michail Antonio's first-half header and Manuel Lanzini's penalty and looked on course for only their fourth league win of the season. But Harry Kane had a different idea and turned the game on its head with two late strikes, first from close range off a nice buildup by substitute Son Heung-Min, second from the spot after the South Korean was brought down in the box by Havard Nordtveit. The perfect comeback saw Spurs extend their unbeaten run to 12 games, the last time they managed that in 1960-61, the North Londoners won the league and cup double!

What a team! Antonio Conte's master 3-4-3 stroke prevailed again, serving the Blues their sixth win on the trot, beating Middlesbrough 0-1 at the Riverside Stadium. Diego Costa's strong drill and 10th goal of the season decided a quite even contest, disappointing for Boro, rewarding for Roman Abramovich's side as they move top of the table, one point ahead of Liverpool after their less inspiring goalless draw at Southampton. Tony Pulis' West Brom impressed smashing Burnley 4-0 and David Moyes' Sunderland are starting a run with their second successive win beating a dire Hull City 3-0.

What a man! Yaya Touré marked his shock return for Man City with two decisive goals, grabbing a dramatic late win for the Blues at Crystal Palace. The Ivory Coast midfielder made his first Premier League appearance for Pep Guardiola's side after a long-ongoing dispute with his agent, combining well with Nolito to fire City ahead at the end of the first half. Palace were level thanks to substitute Connor Wickham's smash second half equaliser. But Touré spoilt the show for the home side, heading home a late winner off Kevin De Bruyne's corner from close range, moving City up to third in the table, level on points with Liverpool. And Jermain Defoe deserves a shoutout after netting his 150th Premier League goal in the Black Cats' comfortable 3-0 home win against the Tigers.

What a goal! You were not allowed to blink at Vicarage Road! It took Etienne Capoue only 33 seconds to give Watford the lead against falling champions Leicester, their fastest Premier League goal. Roberto Pereyra curled in a second before the Foxes pulled one back from the spot. The champions weren't able to turn it around, the 2-1 result making them only the third reigning champions, after Leeds in 1992 and Blackburn in 1995, to start the Premier League season without a win from their opening six away games.

What the hell?! Arsenal's late equaliser at Old Trafford was their first goal against José Mourinho in nearly a decade (since May 2007 to be exact)! Arsène Wenger's smirky grin sealed the Red Devil's misery, who were especially frustrated after being denied a spot kick by referee Andre Marriner when Nacho Monreal's arm crossed and brought down Antonio Valencia on the edge of the box. However, Mourinho's protests were over-the-top and cannot cover up the fact that this match was nowhere near as mouthwateringly bombastic, top quality nor title-decisive as it has been in the past, United rusting in 6th on 19 points and the Gunners losing pace to the top in 4th on 25 points, the gap growing to five points between the top five and the rest.

My Predictions - Actual Results
Man United 1:1 Arsenal - 1:1
Crystal Palace 1:2 Man City - 1:2
Everton 2:1 Swansea - 1:1
Southampton 2:3 Liverpool - 0:0
Stoke City 1:1 Bournemouth - 0:1
Sunderland 2:3 Hull City - 3:0
Watford 1:2 Leicester - 2:1
Tottenham 4:2 West Ham - 3:2
Middlesbrough 0-4 Chelsea - 0:1
West Brom 0:0 Burnley - 4:0

Click here to read last week's Premier League Picks

Pictures taken from the BBC match reports 

Premier League Picks Of The Week 2

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 2

The second week of Premier League action saw:

253 Shots - most by Liverpool = 26

22 Goals - most by Man City = 4

237 Fouls - most by Watford = 20

34 Bookings - most by Man City & Watford = 4

1 Red Card - 2nd yellow for Arter for Bournemouth

3 Penalties - 3 scored, 0 missed

Paul Merson's rant about Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger's team selection and choices

Jeff Stelling promoting Hartlepool to the Premier League and Iain Dowie losing track of the score

David Moyes being blunt about Sunderland's chances

What a game! Burnley's win against Liverpool after their seven-goal thriller-victory against Arsenal last week was impressive but less surprising looking at the Reds' mixed form of last season. Jürgen Klopp's men proved once again possession and stats in general don't mean anything and everything. The Reds have created the most chances in the Premier League so far this season (34), but not converting near enough. From top to flop within days and you don't know which one will turn up next. We will wait and see which one will turn up against Burton Albion in the EFL Cup and then at Tottenham in the next Premier League clash (which I will be covering live on ByTheMinute.co).

What a team! Hull City proved all doubters wrong again after beating Swansea 0-2 at the Liberty Stadium. If caretaker manager Mike Phelan doesn't get the job permanently, then fool them. The relegation favourites could not have wished for a better start to the season, flying high in the top four.

What a goal! Cristhian Stuani's opener for Middlesbrough at Sunderland was a stunner. The Uruguayan opened his account for Boro and the Premier League with an unstoppable long-range smacker against the run of play after 13 minutes at the Stadium of Light. He doubled David Moyes' men's misery just before half time and the home side got a goal back in the second half but were not able to recover. Aitor Karanka's side recorded their first win of the season whilst Moyes' account at the Black Cats is still blank, looking more and more difficult and hopeless.

What a man! Zlatan Ibrahimovic can't do anything wrong at the moment. The 34-year old has scored in both opening games to feed United six point out of six and José Mourinho's ego and big mouth. As if the latter needed that! But it's still early days, LVG won the first two games last season as well and we know what happened next...

What the hell?! Diego Costa got away with it once again!!! Manager Antonio Conte's changes did work the magic and got his side back late on after falling behind at Watford. Second sub Michy Batshuayi pulled a goal with ten minutes left before third sub Cesc Fabregas set up Costa for the winner just before the end. But like last week, Costa got away with it! The 27-year-old should have not been on the field after appearing to dive to try and win a second-half penalty, when he had already been in referee Jon Moss' book. The rules are there for a reason, new and old, so please enforce them!!!

My predictions - Actual results

Man United 1:1 Southampton - 2:0
Stoke City 0:1 Man City - 1:4
Burnley 0:3 Liverpool - 2:0
Swansea 2:2 Hull City - 0:2
Tottenham 2:0 Crystal Palace - 1:0
Watford 1:2 Chelsea - 1:2
West Brom 1:1 Everton - 1:2
Leicester City 1:1 Arsenal - 0:0
Sunderland 0:0 Middlesbrough - 1:2
West Ham 2:1 Bournemouth - 1:0

Click here for last week's Premier League Picks

Pictures taken from BBC match reports (top picture montage taken from Bing Search)

Week 5: Premier League Action Summary

Sports - Football - Premier League - Action Summary - Week 5

The fifth week of action saw 10 games, 29 goals, 12 in the first half, 17 in the second half, 3 in injury time; 253 attempts, 83 on target and 119 corners; 202 fouls, 23 bookings, 1 red card, 1 penalty scored, 1 penalty saved.

Most scored: Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium with 4 goals.

Top creators: Tottenham at the Cardiff City Stadium with 21 attempts, 12 on target, 12 corners and 63.7% possession.

Main offenders: West Ham at Upton Park with 17 fouls, 2 yellow cards and 1 sending off.

Norwich 0-1 Aston Villa:

Aston Villa recorded their first clean sheet in 27 league games as they beat Norwich 0-1 at Carrow Road. An action-packed first half started off with the home side on top winning a penalty after just six minutes when Cieran Clark handled the ball. But Brad Guzan made a fine save diving to his left and denying Robert Snodgrass from the spot. The Canaries saw Andreas Weimann's shot for Villa come off he post before sub Libor Kozak who replaced injured Christian Benteke scored 90 seconds after coming on just before the half-hour mark. Having missed a one-on-one chance against Norwich keeper John Ruddy, the ball came back to Gabriel Agbonlahor who was unselfish enough to cut it back to Kozak who netted it gratefully. After an entertaining end-to-end encounter, Paul Lambert can thank Guzan for some fine saves and helping his side to victory against his former employers. Norwich have only lost two of their last 12 league games at Carrow Road - both against Aston Villa.

Liverpool 0-1 Southampton:

Liverpool were denied their best ever start to a Premier League season by a defiant Southampton after losing 0-1 at Anfield despite a heroic performance by Simon Mignolet. The Belgian goalkeeper made save after save including a breath-taking triple-save denying Steven Davis. Adam Lallana and Dejan Lovren were also denied by the stopper before the latter held off Daniel Agger to head in the winner for Mauricio Pochettino's men. Saints keeper Artur Boruc denied Steven Gerrard and Daniel Sturridge with some impressive saves of his own but all in all the home side struggled to create chances and break through a stubborn back line. This was the second home defeat of 2013 for Brendan Rodgers men, both against Southampton.

Newcastle 2-3 Hull City:

A Loic Remy double was not enough for Newcastle as they fell to a stunning Sone Aluko strike losing 2-3 against Hull City at St James Park. Remy had given the hosts the lead heading in Papiss Cisse's miscued shot. Robbie Brady equalised with a low volley before Remy netted his second off Yohan Cabaye's attempt. Ahmed Elmohamady glanced in Brady's free kick to make it 2-2 after the break before Aluko smacked in the winner from 18 yards. Alan Pardew's men came into the match on the back of two wins on the trot over Fulham and Aston Villa. After an entertaining encounter Steve Bruce was delighted with his side's display, the Tigers putting an end to the home side's run picking up seven points from their opening five games in their first season back in the Premier League after three years in the Championship.

West Brom 3-0 Sunderland:

West Brom condemned Sunderland to their fourth Premier League defeat of the season thrashing them 3-0 at the Hawthorns. Debutant Stephane Sessegnon scored against his former side netting an easy rebound after Keiren Westwood initially denied Scott Sinclair. Liam Ridgewell doubled the score with a one-touch bang of a shot before the Black Cats were forced to play the last 15 minutes reduced to 10 men after manager Paulo Di Canio had already made all three available substitutions and then lost Steven Fletcher to injury. Morgan Amalfitano completed the Italian's miserable afternoon and run by making it 3-0 with an angled shot in injury time and making it three defeats on the trot with just one point out of five games for the visitors. The traveling fans showed their frustration at the bottom club's manager when he went to applaud them which turned out to be a peculiar encounter in front of the cameras. The bigger the worry and despair got for Di Canio, the greater the relief and celebration was for Steve Clarke after his side finally recorded their first win to see them climb out of the relegation zone and up to 15th.

West Ham 2-3 Everton:

Everton produced a perfect turnaround as they twice came from behind to beat 10-man West Ham at Upton Park. Roberto Martinez's men thereby remain the last unbeaten side in the Premier League this season in sixth place on nine points out of five games. Ravel Morrison's deflected shot from the edge of the box got the scoreboard rolling and the hosts ahead before Leighton Baines levelled the score with a spectacular free kick bending and swerving the ball across and past a helpless Jussi Jaaskelainen. The Hammers restored their lead against the run of play thanks to Mark Noble's penalty conversion after skipper Kevin Nolan drew a foul from James McCarthy after a fine build-up in the box. But the game took a decisive twist when Noble was given a second booking for a tackle from behind on Toffee midfielder Ross Barkley. Baines struck again netting another stunning free-kick in the opposite corner. Substitute Romelu Lukaku completed the perfect turnaround heading in the winner for the visitors and condemning Sam Allardyce's men to their second defeat of the season and down to 14th.

Chelsea 2-0 Fulham:

Chelsea put their worst start to a league season in 10 years behind them after beating Fulham 2-0 at Stamford Bridge going top of the table for 24 hours at least. Jose Mourinho laughed off all fears and critics in the post-match interview after watching Oscar and John Mikel Obi score two second-half goals to settle the bout and bag three points for the Blues. After a less entertaining, more hard-working first half where Darren Bent's shot at home keeper Petr Cech was the closest either team got, Oscar settled Chelsea's nerves with a fine finish from close range. Mikel doubled the score with his first league goal in 185 games to end a four-game winless run for Roman Abramovich's men. The result took Chelsea above Liverpool at the top of the table before Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester City leapfrogged them with their wins on Sunday (see summaries below).

Arsenal 3-1 Stoke City:

Arsenal recorded their seventh win on the trot after beating Stoke convincingly 3-1 at the Emirates to send them top of the table ahead of bitter London rivals Tottenham on goal difference. Aaron Ramsey opened the scoring after just five minutes netting his seventh goal in eight games for the Gunners by tapping in the rebound after Asmir Begovic had pushed Mesut Ozil's free kick straight at him. The Potters were level 20 minutes later after Geoff Cameron netted Marko Arnautovic's shot that came off the post. But Per Mertesacker put the home side back ahead and in command before the break heading in Ozil's corner with keeper Begovic all over the place again. Bacary Sagna made it three goals and three points for Arsene Wenger's men later on in the second half, heading in Ozil's free kick with a nice leap into the left corner leaving the keeper stranded yet again. Ozil had a hand in all three Arsenal goals on his home debut for the club, showing how pivotal the German has already become for the club, especially with the long injury list they still have.

Crystal Palace 0-2 Swansea:

Swansea bossed the game from start to finish brushing aside a poor Crystal Palace side 2-0 at Selhurst Park. Striker Miguel Michu fired the ball under Palace keeper Julian Speroni to open the scoring after just 80 seconds, producing a banging start for the Swans. Nathan Dyer doubled the home side's lead soon after the break hammering a rebound high into the net after some great work by Michu in the build-up again setting up Alvaro Vazquez whose shot was saved by Speroni. Michu had the ball in the back of the net again before the final whistle, connecting to Jonathan de Guzman's long through-ball, but the goal was disallowed for offside. It was almost like a training match for Michael Laudrup's men, dominating in possession, territory and chances, Ian Holloway admitting post-match how awful his side were.

Cardiff 0-1 Tottenham:

Welsh hearts were broken in stoppage time as Paulinho scored a stoppage-time winner for Tottenham in a tense encounter at the Cardiff City stadium. Malky Mackay's men were out to frustrate and stun Spurs as they did in their 3-2 home win against Manchester City with keeper David Marshall starring, producing one brilliant save after another. The London side dominated possession and produced plenty of chances keeping Marshall more than busy. But Cardiff's defence was finally breached in the dying seconds when Brazilian Paulinho connected onto Erik Lamela's cross with a cheeky back-heeler netting three crucial points for Andre Villas-Boas men putting them level on points with rivals Arsenal at the top of the table before their big derby clash against Chelsea next weekend.

Manchester City 4-1 Manchester United:

Manchester City thrashed bitter rivals Manchester United 4-1 in a gob-smacking derby at the Etihad Stadium. It was the first derby for both David Moyes and Manuel Pellegrini, the first time two new managers took over the derby since 1947. The energy levels were high from kick-off with end-to-end stuff before Sergio Aguero opened the scoring for the home side with a marvellous finish off a fine link between Samir Nasri and Aleksandar Kolerov. Yaya Toure doubled the lead just before the interval tapping in a deflected corner finding himself in plenty of space with the United defence totally zoned out. Whatever Moyes' team talk was at half time, it did not show much effect as seconds after the break, United were carved open again, Alvaro Negredo's clip-in finding Aguero free, completing the move with a simple left-footed finish to make it 3-0. And five minutes later City tore United apart again, Vincent Kompany running in on the right finding Nasri whose right-footed smacker made it 4-0. It was a wonderful carve-finish, from one end to the other and stunned United, leaving everyone wonder how much worse the thrash score line could get. In the end, it stayed four for City but Wayne Rooney did pull one back for United, curling a free kick into the top right corner past Joe Hart's glove, a superb jump beaten by a superb goal. It was merely a consolation goal though, as City recorded an emphatic win against the Red Devils, leaving Moyes wondering whether he can ever win a derby as he was unable to beat Liverpool in his 11 years as Everton boss.

Week 3: Premier League Action Summary

Sports - Football - Premier League - Action Summary - Week 3

The third week of action saw 9 games, only 13 goals, 4 in the first half, 9 in the second half, 1 in injury time; 208 attempts, 91 on target and 87 corners; 188 fouls, 32 bookings, 1 red card, 1 penalty scored.

Most scored: At Selhurst Park (4 goals), by Crystal Palace (3 goals).

Top creators: Newcastle at St James Park (24 attempts, 9 on target, 13 corners).

Main offenders: Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield with 30 fouls and 6 bookings between them; Sunderland with the only sending off of the weekend at Selhurst Park (John O'Shea).

Manchester City 2-0 Hull City:

An Alvaro Negredo header and quality Yaya Toure free kick in the last half hour meant heartbreak for Hull City losing 2-0 to Manchester City after a competitive encounter at the Etihad Stadium. The Tigers were on fire leaving the home side behind and trying to catch up. Joe Hart was beaten by Robert Koren's diagonal smacker before it went just wide. Sone Aluko put a golden chance wide before Danny Graham had a goal correctly ruled out for offside for the visitors. It was painful to watch for Manuel Pellegrini seeing his side creating more misses and conceding more chances to the visitors with David Silva's free kick going just wide before Joleon Lescott pulled a flying save out of Allan McGregor. The deadlock was finally broken against the run of play when Pablo Zabaleta's replacement Negredo planted a header into the back of the net, heartbreak for Steve Bruce's men. And to add salt to the wound, Toure doubled the score with a smacking free kick from about 18 yards out, off the bar and in, sealing a less-than convincing win for the former champions against the promoted side.

Cardiff 0-0 Everton:

Everton had to settle for a point in a goalless draw at the Cardiff City Stadium, very much contrasting to the win against Manchester City last week. In a flat and tough encounter, Roberto Martinez's men were held back and frustrated by a defiant and dominant home side. The Bluebirds definitely created more chances and pressure but were lucky not to concede a penalty when Gary Medel brought down Leighton Baines in the box, referee Phil Dowd waving play on. To cap the frustrating afternoon for the Toffees, Kevin Mirallas missed two golden chances, including one easy tap-in late on and Cardiff keeper David Marshall kept out a deflected Nikica Jelavic header. The result means Martinez remains unbeaten in the Premier League since taking over at Goodison Park, but the Spaniard will not be happy after seeing his side leave Wales with their third-successive draw of the season.

Newcastle 1-0 Fulham:

Hatem Ben Arfa's powerful left-footed strike ended Newcastle's wait for their first Premier League home goal of the season beating Fulham 1-0 at St James' Park and securing their first league win of the campaign. The home side saw chances deflected and pressure blocked out well by the visitors. Adel Taarabt pulled a great save out of Tim Krul and Papiss Cisse headed against the cross bar for the Cottagers. Yoan Gouffran and Yohan Cabaye missed most chances for the Toons, not lastly thanks to Fulham goalkeeper David Stockdale who was kept busy till the end and produced some top-draw saves. But in the end, it was all for nothing as Ben Arfa's smacker from the edge of the box four minutes from time sealed a home win, to the relief of boss Alan Pardew.

Norwich 1-0 Southampton:

The Canaries recorded their first Premier League win of the season against Southampton at Carrow Road thanks to teenager Nathan Redmond's first goal of the season. The 19-year-old scored a low shot from outside the box past Saints goalkeeper Artur Boruc into the near corner after a fine run from the halfway line and cheeky step-overs cutting in from the left. Mauricio Pochettino felt aggrieved and rightly so after seeing his side fail to score including captain Adam Lallana's hit against the post and a penalty not given for Bradley Johnson's handball in the first half. However, the visitors were lucky to survive an onslaught including a wide hit by Redmond, a Robert Snodgrass free kick flicked on by Ricky van Wolfswinkel causing ping-pong havoc in the box and keeping both Calum Chambers and Boruc busy. The prior was involved in a couple of incidents where the home side appealed for handball, but all penalty appeals were ignored. Norwich keeper John Ruddy was scared a couple of times but denied both Rickie Lambert and Dani Osvaldo before Redmond's strike put the hosts ahead in the 69th minute. The Saints are used to keeping their goals late this season but were unable to force an equaliser as Chris Hughton's men secured all three points.

West Ham 0-1 Stoke City:

Jermaine Pennant ended his 864-day wait to find his name on the scoreboard for the first time since 2011 after a superb curled free kick gave Stoke the lead and win against a lacklustre West Ham side at Upton Park. The substitute's curled effort was enough to hand Mark Hughes' s men their second Premier League win on the trot. Hammers goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen had produced a fine double-save in the first half to keep his side in the contest, but the Potters stayed in control for most of the game in a disappointing encounter. Sam Allardyce's side rarely threatened and will be counting down the days until they can welcome injured striker Andy Carroll back onto the pitch. The defeat was the Hammers' first at home since February and Pennant's effort was their first league goal conceded this season.

Crystal Palace 3-1 Sunderland:

Two late goals by Dwight Gayle and substitute Stuart O'Keefe sealed victory for Crystal Palace as they beat Sunderland 3-1 at Selhurst Park. The Black Cats poor start to the campaign continued as they saw their side crumble to pieces after John O'Shea saw red for his tackle on Gayle who converted the resulting penalty sending the ball underneath the body of Sunderland goalkeeper Keiren Westwood. Danny Gabbidon had given Ian Holloway's men the lead from close range off a corner early on in the match, recording his first goal in 116 Premier League appearances, before Steven Fletcher equalised for the visitors with an unmarked diagonal header into the left corner of the net, leaving goalkeeper Julian Speroni stranded just past the hour mark. But it all went downhill from there for Paulo Di Canio's side, losing one man and two goals in the final 12 minutes.

Liverpool 1-0 Manchester United:

Liverpool continued their 100% start to the season with their third 1-0 win on the trot, this time against arch rivals Manchester United at Anfield adding to the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of Bill Shankly's birth. Birthday boy Daniel Sturridge turned in Daniel Agger's header off a corner after just over three minutes, his third consecutive match winner for the Merseysiders, to give the home side a blistering start against David Moyes' men. United were disjointed without injured Wayne Rooney, controlled and dominated by the home side for most of the first half. The Red Devils came back stronger after the interval, keeping Reds keeper Simon Mignolet busier, Robin van Persie and Ashley Young creating and producing most pressure and pulling save after save from the 25-year-old Belgian keeper. The £9m summer signing from Sunderland has yet to concede a Premier League goal this season and together with man-of-the-match Agger frustrated the hell out of RVP and co. This result ended United's unbeaten run of 13 Premier League away games, a record Brendan Rodgers' men were more than happy to put a stop to, handing them their best league start for 19 years.

West Brom 0-2 Swansea:

Swansea recorded their first Premier League win of the season against West Brom at the Hawthorns thanks to a goal in each half from Ben Davies and Pablo Hernandez. Both teams came into the game in poor form, the Baggies having won only one of their last 11 Premier League matches and yet to find the target this season whilst Swansea had just won two of their previous 13. The returning Nicolas Anelka went closest for Steve Clarke's men before the break, but a smacker from Davies gave the visitors the lead and him his only second-ever goal for the club. Michael Laudrup's men took over the game from there dominating the second half and sealing the win and three points thanks to Hernandez's first goal for the club from close range leaving West Brom rock bottom of the Premier League table.

Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham:

Olivier Giroud's fourth goal of the season handed Arsenal their fourth consecutive win since their opening day defeat to Aston Villa and sealed Tottenham's first defeat of the season at the Emirates. This absorbing encounter between the North London rivals was not exactly action-and-goal-packed as the last two 5-2 thrashes the Gunners enjoyed for the last couple of seasons. But Arsene Wenger will be more than chuffed to have beaten the (£105m) big spenders after all the criticism and taunts on his lack of activity on the player market. Andre Villas-Boas men created several good chances, Wojciech Szczesny stopping Jermain Defoe's deflected shot, but the home side were more dominant with more clear-cut attempts, Santi Cazorla coming close twice with clever free kicks whilst Giroud and Theo Walcott were both denied by Hugo Lloris. Both worked well together for the goal, the prior tucking in the latter's low cross at the near post to send Arsenal up to fourth in the Premier League. Tottenham have only won once at Arsenal since 1993 and this defeat showed what they might miss and have to expect without Gareth Bale, who sealed the deal and has joined Real Madrid for a world record transfer fee of £85.3m.